The present disclosure relates generally to product manufacturing management, and more particularly, to an efficient management of production of high volume and highly customized semiconductor products.
A standard production management process might be to order large quantities of raw materials and reorder when stocks look low. This method is simple and does not require any sophisticated analysis. It is effective for small lot production in a low volume environment. It can also be made effective in a mass-production environment of a single product. This process provides poor response to demand changes. It is ineffective in high-volume, multi-product environments. It often requires carrying large inventories with the related inventory expenses.
A more advanced standard process has been developed that plans inventory purchasing based on orders and forecast. This system is referred to by C>several names, more commonly as MRP (Material Requirements Planning). These systems calculate the quantity of materials and resources required to fill existing orders and forecast. Based on estimated delivery lead-times and the order of assembly, the system generates estimates for a time-sequenced purchasing plan.
MRP works well in large-volume, multi-product environments. It is capable of responding to rapidly changing order environments. However, MRP is not particularly effective in managing production that includes customized orders or frequent change-orders.
What is needed is an efficient method for managing material and resources in support of frequent order changes in a high-volume, continuous-flow, highly-customized manufacturing environment.